Nothing stays the same forever. Even Life Savers, those five-flavor rolls of tiny hard candies that have been a treat for Americans for decades, are about to change.

The company has announced plans to change its cherry, orange, lemon, lime and pineapple combination which has been on a roll since before the advent of television.

As a dad, I appreciate candy that doesn't melt in your hand or on your kids' shirts.

I've always loved Life Savers.

Today more than 125 million Life Savers are consumed daily, not bad for such a tiny candy. Clarence Crane would have been amazed. He sold his rights to the candy in 1913 for less than $3,000.

He didn't know that his unique invention, which used a pill-making machine to press round, flat mints, would become an American icon.

Crane created Life Savers mints in 1912 to boost summertime candy sales when soft chocolate candies were prone to melt.

Boiled drops, first called Life Savers Fruit Drops, were introduced in 1924. But it wasn't until 1929 that the candies ended up with holes. Since then, all Life Savers have come with the distinctive hole. The five-flavor roll was introduced in 1935.

Now Kraft Foods, which owns Life Savers, is looking to update its candy treats. It has asked its candy fans to cast their ballots on a Web site, candystand.com, as it seeks to come up with a new five-candy lineup. There are 11 flavors on the ballot. Joining the incumbents are green apple, watermelon, raspberry, mango melon, tangerine and blackberry.

Becca and Bailey want watermelon, green apple and raspberry. Joni wants tangerine.

They all sound good to me, except maybe blackberry.

Our family got on the Internet the other night to cast our votes. Technology is a wonderful thing. If it was this easy to vote for president, voter turnout would be a lot higher.

The great thing about being a journalist is that you get paid to ferret out facts. It doesn't hurt that professional marketing people send us press releases on subjects of major importance such as Life Savers and Barbie dolls.

In today's information age, we learn that 54 miles of Life Savers roll candy is produced on an average day. More than 46 billion Life Savers are produced annually, weighing in at 57.5 million pounds.

It's estimated that there are a million locations in the United States where you can buy the famous roll candy.

According to the folks at Life Savers, the candy is good for more than licking. They say people tell them the candy flavors hot tea, cures seasickness, keeps drivers alert on long trips, and serves as Christmas ornaments and candleholders on birthday cakes.

The candy maker has put a lot of study into its sweet treats. It insists those who love lemon Life Savers tend to earn more than $100,000 a year. That's not my favorite, which clearly explains why I'm not pulling in the big bucks.

Those who are partial to orange Life Savers tend to be country music fans and have a pet, surveys show.

Lime loyalists have an affinity for both hockey and snakes, according to the candy maker.

I like lime and hockey, but snakes are another matter entirely.

Still, I'll let it slide by. When you're on a roll, nothing else matters.

Mark Bliss is a staff writer for the Southeast Missourian.